Chris Moyses (2015)

Division: Blue Square Premier

Estimated Budget: Mid Table

Ins: Lee Beevers, Matt Rhead, Greg Tempest, Liam Hearn, Luke Waterfall, Chris Bush, Jack Muldoon, Bradley Wood, Craig Stanley, Matt Sparrow, Callum Howe

Outs: Jake Caprice, Arnaud Mendy, Todd Jordan, Sean Newton, Delano Sam-Yorke, Ben Tomlinson, Tom Miller, Jordan Burrow, Hamza Bencherif

Rating at the time: 7/10

Rating with hindsight: 10/10

After finishing 14th and 15th, mid-table nothingness seemed to be the order of the day for City. However, Chris Moyses did initiate a reset, and it’s widely accepted that from 2015 onwards, the club’s trajectory changed. Moses helped reconnect the fans and the club in a way that maybe Luke Foster and Nat Brown arriving were meant to. Instead of harking back to a different era, Chris began to deliver a new one, and that’s seen in his dealings.

Out went some of those perceived to be troublemakers, such as Newton. Nolan followed: he was sent out to Wrexham after the window, while the likes of Bencherif and Burrow, who didn’t want to be here, went as well. Tom Miller’s departure was tough, he’d been a good servant, but it did feel like a rebuild was needed.

Luke Waterfall. Matt Rhead. Jack Muldoon. Callum Howe. Lee Beevers. Bradley Wood. What do they have in common? They all played a significant role in our 2016/17 title win. Terry Hawkridge arrived a few weeks into the season on loan as well, and while perhaps the headline in the summer was Liam Hearn, the absolute fact is that the upturn in our fortunes, particularly in terms of characters and fan belief, began in this window.

Biggest Hit

I would love to say Luke Waterfall, a title-winning captain and later a Checktrade Trophy winner, but let’s be honest, it’s the big man. He was a colossus for us for four seasons, winning trophy after trophy, and of course, winding up opponents. There are few players quite like Matt Rhead ever to have played for City, and when Chris Moyses signed him, he signed a Lincoln City legend.

Biggest Flop

Liam Hearn didn’t really flop – he scored 10 goals in 20 starts (11 in 21 in all competitions), so he was actually a massive hit. It’s hard to get past the Grimsby-itis thing, though. He was a Codhead, through and through, and on November 26th, former boss Paul Cox asked to take him on loan at Barrow, and Hearn wanted to go. He left, played just 80 minutes for them, and came back on New Year’s Eve full of apologies that have never really been accepted.